The chorus will be conducted by Dr. Mary Kay Geston, an associate professor of music at Northwestern College in St. Paul. Singers may not need have previous choral experience, but must be at least 55 years old. Admission to the chorus will be determined by auditions, held at MacPhail in late August and early September.

The chorus is being funded by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Quaker Hill Foundation and the Minnesota arts and cultural heritage fund. The goal of the chorus is to engage a segment of the population that’s traditionally viewed only as consumers of art into the process of creating and performing.

According to a release “the chorus aims to be not just a recreation but a serious artistic endeavor–a focus of learning, creativity, pride, and self-renewal in later life, serving both its members and the senior population as a whole.”

Voices of Experience will give its first concerts on November 19 and 21, performing alongside the Minnesota Chorale and its Minneapolis Youth Chorus.